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Police Officer Initiated Intimate Partner Violence by Male and Female Officers: A Test of Social Learning Theory

Williamson, Matthew T
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1604245398537525

Abstract Details

2020, Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, Sociology.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) continues to be a major concern having significant consequences for individuals and society. Research suggests that 20-40% of police families experience IPV, suggesting a prevalence rate among police families that is twice that of the general population. IPV committed by officers is unique as officers have access and training with firearms, have cultural capital to avoid being arrested and know where victims may seek help. My dissertation utilized data from the Police Stress and Domestic Violence in Police Families in Baltimore, Maryland 1997-1999. The aims of this study were to 1) examine how Social Learning Theory (SLT) impacts IPV and varies by sex, 2) examine how SLT’s concept of definitions increase or decrease the likelihood of IPV, and 3) examine the risk and protective factors of IPV among female officers. To empirically test SLT, logistic regression was utilized. To examine the risk and protective factors among female officers, chi-square tests and logistic regression were used. The results of the study suggest that the mechanisms of IPV differ among male and female officers. Additionally, officers that hold favorable definitions of IPV and control are more likely to perpetrate IPV. When examining factors that can impact IPV among females, anger and burnout increase the odds of IPV. Limitations of my dissertation include a limited focus on physical IPV, using dated data, and possible desirability bias with a reliance of self-report data. This study contributes to the literature methodologically, theoretically and substantively. Researching officers provides a more comprehensive analysis of IPV perpetration than previous studies by including numerous measures for theoretical concepts and control measures for an understudied group: police officers. Next, this study tests SLT’s concept of definitions, a concept that has not been fully examined in IPV research. Sex was analyzed in order to provide a better understanding of how an officer’s sex relates to SLT and IPV. The three policy suggestions my research supports are providing officers with additional coursework on inequality and violence, providing officers with additional counseling services, and providing children who witness IPV with additional resources.
Robert Peralta, PhD (Committee Chair)
Stacey Nofziger, PhD (Committee Member)
Juan Xi, PhD (Committee Member)
Kathryn Feltey, PhD (Committee Member)
Dawn Johnson, PhD (Committee Chair)
190 p.
Criminology; Sociology
Intimate Partner Violence; Social Learning Theory; Police Officers; Officer Perpetrated IPV; Sex; Criminological Theory

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Williamson, M. T. (2020). Police Officer Initiated Intimate Partner Violence by Male and Female Officers: A Test of Social Learning Theory [Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1604245398537525

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Williamson, Matthew. Police Officer Initiated Intimate Partner Violence by Male and Female Officers: A Test of Social Learning Theory . 2020. University of Akron, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1604245398537525.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Williamson, Matthew. "Police Officer Initiated Intimate Partner Violence by Male and Female Officers: A Test of Social Learning Theory ." Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1604245398537525

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

akron1604245398537525
736
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This open access ETD is published by University of Akron and OhioLINK.